New sextet of Steinways resounds in Murphy Hall

Amir Khosrowpour

The world standard for piano quality is becoming more commonplace in KU's piano department.

Thanks to an anonymous donation — and a student's winning performance — KU is home to six new Steinway grand pianos.

Five Steinway pianos — widely considered to set the world standard for piano quality with unsurpassed sound and response — recently were placed in Murphy Hall practice rooms, bought through an anonymous donation of $177,500 secured by Toni-Marie Montgomery, dean of fine arts. The school hopes to eventually purchase 38 new Steinways for student use. The department has 84 pianos, 26 of which are Steinways.

However, the sixth Steinway, won by the student, most likely will leave campus as soon as its owner moves out of his dorm.

Amir Khosrowpour, a senior in music and dance, took first place in the piano division of the final round of the annual Music Teachers National Association Collegiate Artist Performance Competition last March in Cincinnati. The reward for completing the rigorous process, ending with a 45-minute final performance, was a Steinway & Sons grand piano, valued at $35,900.

Khosrowpour's piano was delivered in January but, as a resident of Hashinger Hall, he could not house it himself. Instead, Khosrowpour's prize piano resides in Murphy Hall, where several of his student colleagues also have access to the instrument.

Khosrowpour, a senior from Irvine, Calif., is majoring in performance and composition. He also is a jazz pianist. His instructor is Professor Jack Winerock.

According to Steinway — which celebrates its 150th anniversary this month — more than 98 percent of piano soloists chose Steinways during the 2000-01 concert season. Students say they find practicing on the Steinways "more rewarding" than playing on other pianos. Steinway has been the piano of choice for legends Anton Rubinstein, Vladimir Horowitz and Sergei Rachmaninoff as well as John Lennon and Billy Joel.

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